✿ Exercise 7 - Portfolio Cover Graphic Design ✿

H E L L O!

     For the next project of the 7th week, we were now tasked to do an portfolio cover graphic design. I did my own face to show that I am the creator and that this is my cover for my portfolio. I just thought of this after reading some manga in my free time.

    My theme is "manga" or "comics" which is quite unique in my opinion. I think this is something fitting for a book or a website for comics. It definitely catches attention and also pretty cool and pleasing to the eye.

 Now, let's talk about the principles I used within Typography.

  HIERARCHY - Notice how I make the main text bigger and in the center. This is also under my drawn picture to show that this is me, and under that is what I want my position to be known as. When a person sees what I do and the overall design, it is already given what this design is about. It's about show casing what I can do, and this is just the surface. Around that, I included different drawings and angles that portray ideas and stories. The smaller text are scattered as they aren't as important and are only there for the story of each panel.

   SIZE - I made sure that the sizes were all good enough to be read and made sure they didn't touch any other element I had drawn. This gives emphasis to space and gives importance to neatness and clarity. The bigger the text was - the more important it was, and it is found in the center.

  COLOR - In concern with contrast, I made the color of all the text black, where as 80% of the cover is black and white. This gives an emphasis to my picture, my name, and my position. It applies recognition and keeps the same color palette of the entire cover. Otherwise, it stands out too.

    FONT - The font I used was a sans serif font, called Comic Sabs MS. I used it because it gives the feeling of simplicity and clarity. This is also used in most manga when translated to English, Comics, and often, in Webtoons too. I wanted to show people that I am hard working, patient, disciplined, yet also flexible so I made sure that everything stands out. 

    On to the principles of Composition or Design!

    BALANCE - The balance is overall great, I had my work get evaluated by a few friends. They all said that it was a good example of balance within the cover. The center is the main piece that defines it all, it clearly says "I did this" which is what I want to convey as I show off my skills humbly.

    HARMONY - With the use of similar elements and assets, I think I achieved the harmony aspect well. As you can see, I kept the same art style overall, simple lines, shapes, and even colors. It is visually pleasing. The main piece is what captures the eye's attention as it is the only one in color and the only one in a realistic style of art.

    UNITY - Achieving unity was quite easy when I had this concept in mind. Unity is when the peace comes together and delivers a message. The combination of the colors and the drawings are enough to deliver the idea and the message. They come together and build an image that isn't harsh and clarifies the idea and theme of the cover.

    CONTRAST - The colors are well combined together, there is mainly black and white for the background and neutral colors to paint my own image. My background was simple and the colors of the illustrations are in black and white to portray manga and comics. The main image is the way I want to have the interest of the viewer, which is the main point of the banner. This gives emphasis on my cover's purpose.

    VARIETY - Using the same theme of elements with the same idea; cool, simple, and skillful, they build a good concept. The use of colors are in one family, and it doesn't overload the general aspect of the cover, but it doesn't look boring too. I avoided making the cover boring by putting different illustrations that have contrast. It gives the banner personality even if the entire image is covered.

    PATTERN - I followed the idea of manga, where the entire page is filled with random but meaningful shaped panels. For the that, I think its a pattern too. Even though it is filled, it is not overloaded as the space is still found, but this time it is in both black and white. This applies negative and positive space that does not overload the image. 

    RHYTHM - This is mainly found in the overall illustration of each panel, the use of these feel as if they are going to the center to point to me, the artist. It feels as if I was the person who they came from, and it is exactly right. The rhythm I built for direction also applies a bit on the overall illustration. The eyes are directed to the center of my picture.

    Overall, I honestly found it easy to think of an idea to use for this week's entry. My inspiration struck me as we got dismissed and so I decided to rest first but also began the sketch before I forgot the concept. I hope you enjoyed looking around in my online portfolio, more so now that it has a cover. Thank you for viewing my blog and looking around! Let's all unite and fill the world with positivity and art! Also, if you want to see more of my works, I am part of a Facebook art page called Art Venue, where we are open for commissions! Should you need something drawn, whether it's Traditional or Digital medium, we can guarantee it to be done when you need it and done well!

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